


The Odd Life of Nam Woohyun

by inspiritchingu



Category: Infinite (Band)
Genre: Fantasy, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-21 23:59:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9572684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inspiritchingu/pseuds/inspiritchingu
Summary: Inspired by the movieThe Odd Life of Timothy Green. A childless couple bury a box, containing what they wish for their child to be, in their backyard. Not long after, a child knocks on their door.





	1. The Child

Mr. and Mrs. Nam leave for the elevator. They have just finished an interview for their adoption application. It has been almost six years since they have been married and yet, they still have not been blessed with a child of their own. So, they had both agreed on trying to adopt a child after seeking for many second opinions from different doctors and shedding buckets of tears. They love each other after all and no sickness can defeat that. They are only excited to share their love and build a family by raising a child, or two. That is the only thing they want to focus on.

They suddenly feel the nervousness they did not feel when they entered the building as they step into the elevator.

“Do you think I came across as a responsible mother in there?” Mrs. Nam asks her husband.

“Yes, dear. You were wonderful in there,” Mr. Nam answers but it is not reassuring. He too, is nervous and is worried if he looked capable and caring enough to be a father. Both of their hearts are heavy with worry but they can only hold hands to comfort each other.

Wordlessly, they drive home.

Mr. Nam opens the door for his wife and all her pent-up tears come gushing down. She hugs him. “Will it be okay? Tell me it’s going to be okay!” He only hugs her back tightly as his answer.

The following two weeks go miserably by for the couple. However, on a mockingly bright sunny day, the mailman delivers them a letter. When Mr. Nam finally arrives home from work, they both excitedly and anxiously sit down to open the letter. Mrs. Nam then, breaks out sobbing after scanning the letter hurriedly.

“What is it?” Mr. Nam asks, but he does not need an answer. He does not even bother looking at the letter and just hugs his wife.

They both cry that afternoon.

Miserable does not begin to describe what they feel. They _can_ raise a child. Their salaries are not that high but they live decently and comfortably enough in a two-story house with a backyard; other families cannot even afford to buy a house. They are not bad people. They are not too young nor are they too old; they are only in their mid-thirties. They cannot think of anything wrong with them that God could be so cruel to punish them like this. How are they not good enough candidates to be adoptive parents? They are aware these adoption institutions are very strict to ensure no children fall victim to gangs or pedophiles but surely, they cannot have been mistaken to be either.

Mr. Nam comes up with a ridiculous idea after dinner. “The first step is acceptance, isn't it, honey?” Mrs. Nam puts on a sour face but listens to her husband and nods for him to continue. “We can do that tomorrow but tonight what if we try to imagine what our son would be like? Write about him.” He smiles but his wife’s face is still unreadable. “What do you think?” He is expecting her to burst into tears any second but surprisingly, she takes out paper and pens for the both of them.

She begins, “I want to call him Woohyun.”

Mr. Nam tries saying it to let the name roll off his tongue. “Woohyun. Nam Woohyun. It’s a good name,” he says.

“I want him to be handsome,” Mrs. Nam says and Mr. Nam laughs.

“Of course, he’ll be handsome. He’s our son,” he says.

Mrs. Nam continues, “Let him be full of loveliness that he wants to share it with everyone.” Mr. Nam holds his wife’s hand and smiles at her, “Yes, full of compassion. He’ll have your good heart.”

He then adds, “He’ll be blessed with music and a soothing voice.”

“Should he also play an instrument?”

Mr. Nam dreamily says, “Yes, the guitar and maybe the piano, as well. Bass is fine, too. Even drums.”

“He’ll be a gentleman,” Mrs. Nam, happier than she has been in a long while, writes on as well. “He’ll be very considerate and understanding, not only to women but to everyone he meets.”

“He’ll be great at soccer.”

“All types of sports. Everything. What about dancing?”

“Aren’t we being too greedy?”

“No! I want my son to have everything.”

Mr. Nam, more seriously, supplies, “I will love him regardless of what he can or cannot do. You and I can teach him, anyway.”

“Do you think he could be an idol?” Mrs. Nam jokes to drive the conversation back to the light mood they had in the beginning.

They both laugh and Mr. Nam says, “I don’t want him to break young girls’ hearts.”

“You’re right,” she says. “He’ll be good to everyone. Even people who have hate in their hearts will not be able to resist his charms.”

“How about academics?”

“Well, I don’t want an annoying smart kid.”

“Right, not one of those know-it-alls definitely!”

“I’m happy if he could have a couple of medals though.”

Mr. Nam thinks loudly, “I’d like him to be sincere and honest like me.”

Mrs. Nam giggles, “What if he becomes as stingy as you?”

“It’s called being practical,” he defends. “And yes, he should be. And a hard worker, too.”

“I want him to be playful, too. Not too serious. I want him to enjoy life.”

Mr. Nam smiles at her, “Of course.”

The time passes by like this. They do not notice the late hour until they run out of tea.

“Let’s keep these here,” Mrs. Nam says holding a pretty little box designed with red hearts and roses that Mr. Nam does not think would be fit for a boy but it is not so bad; it is not like he has another box.

After the box is filled and closed, Mr. Nam asks, “Do you want to bury it like a time capsule?”

The wind is blowing hard; there seems to be a storm coming which makes his wife a little worried. “Let’s do it tomorrow. It looks like it’s going to rain.”

But Mr. Nam argues, “We need to start fresh tomorrow. We need to let go of our wish to have a child. If we don’t, we’ll just imagine him more and never accept that he will never be ours.”

Needless to say, Mr. Nam is right. Even though Mrs. Nam feels a pang of pain from being reminded of the crude truth her husband said, she has to agree and so they bury the box under the big Chinese elm tree in their backyard.

“Thank you, honey,” Mrs. Nam says as she hugs her husband tightly.

They head back inside to go to sleep and Mr. Nam suggests, “Maybe we’ll just get a puppy.”

As if the heavens have not been cruel enough, rain, lightning and thunder arrive. Lightning strikes the Chinese elm tree but the tree does not break nor does it fall down. It absorbs the power and when its thunder is heard, of all the things that could erupt from the soil, a naked boy with dark hair and bright brown eyes covered in mud crawls out.

Very naturally, he knocks on the door and waits but no one answers.

He knocks and knocks but no one is still answering the door. He is on the verge of crying while he slams his fist on the door but just then, Mr. Nam opens the door slightly to see who it could be in the middle of the night.

“Honey, it’s a boy!”

“A boy?” Mrs. Nam inquires and curiously, she takes a peek from behind her husband’s shoulder.

The night is like a horror film except the Nams are not the least bit frightened. Instead, they are ecstatic. They let the boy in and lead him upstairs to bathe him.

“You look plenty handsome now that you’re all washed up and clean,” Mrs. Nam exclaims. Looking more at the boy as she towels him dry, she sees some resemblance to her husband.

“Honey, can you come here for a moment?”

Mr. Nam, who was just having coffee and pondering about who to contact about a missing boy, comes into the bathroom and sees the boy in clean clothes that are two sizes too big for him. His nephews always forget their clothes when they come over but their clothes will do for now.

“The police said there was no one who filed for a missing boy recently. Who do you think I should call?”

“Just a second, honey. Can you stand against the wall beside him,” she instructs as she points to the spot beside the boy who is standing obediently still.

Puzzled, Mr. Nam does as his wife instructs. He looks at the boy more carefully, curious as to why his wife asked him to stand beside the boy. He still does not understand so he crouches down to take a good look at the boy’s face and then and there, he sees the striking resemblance.

“Do you see it too?” asks his wife.

They leave the boy inside the bathroom and discuss this mystery in whispers outside.

“But it can’t be,” Mr. Nam says.

“Did you have an affair?”

“Don’t be ridiculous!”

The boy comes out looking worried. “Excuse me,” he interrupts the couple meekly. Then, as if on cue, his stomach grumbles audibly.

Mrs. Nam rushes downstairs, suddenly remembering she has not offered him food yet. “Darling, come follow me,” she instructs.

The boy, however, stays at his spot looking very sad. Mrs. Nam turns to check if the child is following her but he is not. “I mean, you, little boy. Come, let’s get you something to eat.”

“Let me just warm this up for you. Is stew okay? I can cook anything you want.”

“She’s a great cook,” Mr. Nam brags.

The boy shakes his head. “No, please. What you have is more than enough.”

The couple look at him in fond adoration. “You’re such a good boy.”

They watch him eat Mrs. Nam’s re-heated kimchi stew with gusto.

“Your parents must be so worried,” Mr. Nam begins. “What happened to you? What’s your name?”

The boy swallows to empty his mouth full of cabbage. “Woohyun. My name is Woohyun. Nam Woohyun.”

“Woohyun?” They both ask in astonishment.

“Woohyun?” They repeat staring at each other.

The boy nods. He points at the tree that can be seen outside the kitchen’s window. When the couple looks back at him in confusion, he stands up to prop his foot on the stool he was sitting on. He shows the couple his ankle that Mrs. Nam did not notice a while ago. He has leaves growing out of them, out of both his ankles.

“I think I’m going to faint,” Mrs. Nam says breathlessly gripping her seat. She does not faint though but instead, cries from pure joy. It is like a fairy tale except that it is actually happening.

“You can touch them if you like,” he tells his mother and then, he says looking at them in turn. “But please don’t ask me about them.”

“Oh, no, of course, we won’t! You can trust us. We’re your parents.”

Woohyun looks up at his mother. She beams right back at him and wraps him in her arms.

“You’re my baby boy. I love you no matter what,” she tells him.

Mr. Nam, still unbelieving, asks the boy, “So Woohyun, do you know how to sing?”

“Yes,” Woohyun grins and his eyes shine.

Mr. Nam starts singing a song and Woohyun follows along with his humming.

And so, this is the real story of how Mr. and Mrs. Nam had their beloved Woohyun.

Explaining this fantastic occurrence to their families and obtaining proper documents for him to legally be their child will not be so easy but they feel without any need of reassurance from one another that everything will be alright.


	2. The Friend

Woohyun, who looks just about like any other eight year old except for the leaves growing out of his ankles, is a cheerful and active boy. He does not know a lot of things but he learns well and gets along with his classmates. That is, except one. He is another boy and the smartest in their class. His name is Kim Sunggyu.

Woohyun finds Sunggyu very cute though. Sunggyu cannot pronounce his ‘s’ properly and Woohyun finds it cute. Sunggyu has little eyes that make him look sleepy half of the time and Woohyun finds them cute.

Adorable is the first new word that Woohyun learns through the ABC song his father taught him. “Adorable is when someone is too cute you want to pinch their cheeks and you like seeing them happy all the time because seeing them happy makes you happy. Just like you. That’s how you are to me and your mother,” his father told him and that is how Woohyun would describe Sunggyu.

But Woohyun feels that somehow Sunggyu does not like him. This makes Woohyun a little sad. From the very first moment they met, Sunggyu looked at him like he was _different_.

However, Woohyun never stops being friendly towards Sunggyu.

“Good morning, Sunggyu!” he greets cheerfully every time Sunggyu comes in later than him or even when he comes later than Sunggyu.  Sunggyu only nods and sits in his regular seat two rows ahead of Woohyun.

One day, Woohyun’s closest friends are absent because of the flu they all got after playing in the rain. Sunggyu, as usual, eats his lunch alone while reading a book. Woohyun thinks that this is the chance to get closer to Sunggyu.

“Say,” Woohyun says sitting on the seat in front of Sunggyu without asking for any permission. “What’s that book about?”

“It’s called ‘None of Your Business’,” Sunggyu says not looking at the other boy.

Woohyun thinks for a moment. “Funny title. What does business mean?”

Sunggyu groans but does not answer.

Woohyun’s face falls and so, he thinks he might as well ask what is wrong.

“You,” Sunggyu says uninterested. “You’re the problem. You’re weird.”

Woohyun takes offense at this. “What’s weird about me?”

“You’re abnormal.”

“What does that mean?”

Sunggyu is getting frustrated. “You’re not normal. You smile at everyone. You’re good at everything. Everyone likes you.”

“That’s not true.”

“It _is_ so. That’s not normal.”

“You don’t like me. You said that everyone likes me but you don’t. So, it’s not true.”

Sunggyu coughs because he does not want to admit that Woohyun is right.

“Well, there’s something about you that doesn’t seem normal,” he defends after a while.

“I’m adopted,” Woohyun offers because he cannot say he came from a tree.

“I know that. I know other kids who are adopted and you’re not like them. They’re not happy.”

“Is it weird to be happy?”

Sunggyu cannot think of a proper answer and so he exclaims angrily, “I don’t know! Stop bothering me!”

“I like you though,” Woohyun confesses. “I want to be your friend.”

Sunggyu is taken aback. He later answers in a lower voice, “You have a lot of friends. I’m not any special.”

Woohyun seems to start understanding then how special Sunggyu truly is. He is a smart and sensitive boy and yet, he is full of insecurities.

Woohyun invites Sunggyu home for dinner and introduces him to his parents. Mrs. Nam roasts chicken and they eat happily while Woohyun tells them about their day in school. She glances at Sunggyu who has not said a word all evening. She notices though that there are rashes all over his face.

“Oh my God!” She screams. “Sunggyu, what’s happening to you?”

Sunggyu does not want to speak although all worried eyes are on him.

“I’ll call a doctor,” Mr. Nam stands up. “Woohyun, get the first aid kit in the bathroom.”

Mrs. Nam holds Sunggyu’s hand and asks him very gently what happened. Crying, he confesses his allergy to chicken.

“Dear boy, why did you not tell me?”

“It would be a waste Mrs. Nam. You cooked so much food. And it was really delicious,” he reveals in between sobs.

Sungyu stays for the night after a really long telephone conversation between Mr. Nam and Mrs. Kim.

“Yes, Mrs. Kim. The doctor already saw Sunggyu and he brought some antihistamines. He said that if we should monitor him for any other symptoms. We will drive him home to you tomorrow. Yes, yes, you can visit the doctor tomorrow. But he said that if the hives die down after the bath and there aren’t any other symptoms then, it’s fine.”

Their conversation ended with Mr. Nam assuring Mrs. Kim that Sunggyu can borrow Woohyun’s pajamas and that there is no need for her to trouble herself by coming over just to bring Sunggyu’s things because they have everything Sunggyu might need for the third time in their conversation.

“For someone so smart, that was kind of dumb,” Woohyun says honestly, tucking Sunggyu in and preparing another futon for himself to sleep on.

“I didn’t want your parents to hate me. I’m not a picky eater. It’s just, these allergies.”

“They won’t hate you. Who can hate you? You’re adorable.”

“What did you just call me?”

“Adorable,” Woohyun says simply looking at Sunggyu with sincerity brimming from his eyes.

“You’re weird. You know that, right?”

Woohyun giggles. He thinks that even when Sunggyu is mad, he is cute. “I know,” Woohyun replies.

They try to sleep after Woohyun turned off the lights but neither of them can actually sleep.

Sunggyu feels silly but he starts to confess, “I feel like I can tell you everything in the dark.”

“Yeah?” Woohyun asks.

“I’m sorry I didn’t like you.”

“Didn’t?” Woohyun asks. “What about now?”

“Can we be friends?”

Woohyun feels his face grow warm and his chest brimming with joy. “Friends.”

“When is your birthday, Sunggyu?”

“April 28.”

Woohyun smiles. “Oh, 28. That’s like my birthday but it’s on February 8. You see, 2 is February because February is the second month of the year.”

February 8 was when Woohyun came to the Nams’ house and his parents decided that day will be his birthday.

“I know, Woohyun. I’m not a dummy. What’s your favorite color?” Sunggyu asks.

“Red. How about you, Sunggyu? It’s white, isn’t it?”

“How did you know?”

Woohyun grins. “Everything you have except your bag is white and you always like to stay clean.”

“What do you want to be when you grow up, Woohyun?”

“I don’t know,” Woohyun says though his voice suddenly sounds sad.

“I want to be a singer,” Sunggyu says. “But I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“We’re not rich, dummy.”

“Can you only do what you want if you’re rich?”

Sunggyu pauses. How can Woohyun’s dumb questions be actually hidden wisdoms? “It’s not that you can only do what you want if you’re rich. It’s just that you might not earn if you don’t turn out to be good enough.”

“You’re always afraid, aren’t you, Sunggyu?”

Sunggyu doesn’t answer.

“I know I’m not smart like you and people tell you that you should use your knowledge for better ambitions but I think you should be happy. You don’t always smile and it’s sad, Sunggyu; because you’re cute. It’s sad you that worry about things when no one is thinking anything bad about you.”

Sunggyu cries though he does not want to cry. Woohyun thinks he is just talking to himself by now because Sunggyu must have fallen asleep. He turns on the lights and he sees the other boy crying.

“I hate you, Nam Woohyun,” Sunggyu says in between sobs. “You’re dumb but you’re right and I hate you.”

Woohyun grins.  Obviously, Sunggyu has a funny way of saying he finally likes him too and it makes Woohyun a little flustered to say anything but he feels warmth spread in his chest.

“You’re my best friend in the whole world,” Woohyun declares after Sunggyu calms down. “I’ll  apishiate you and be there for you no matter what!”

Sunggyu snorts but only says, “It’s appreciate, not apishiate.”

“Ahh, what does it mean?”

“Why did you tell me that if you don’t know what it means?” Sunggyu demands.

“Mother always tells me that.”

Sunggyu bites back a smile and answers, “You like something and you don’t want it to change. You appreciate it.”

“Ahh. I don’t appreciate you.”

Sunggyu glares at Woohyun this time.

“I want you to stop being afraid and be happy always. I don’t appreciate you right now,” Woohyun expounds.

Then, Woohyun hesitatingly uncovers his sheets and says, “I have something to show you since you’re my best friend.”

Sunggyu suddenly feels unsure about this and wonders if he should protest but before he could start to say anything, Woohyun already takes off his socks showing him his ankles with bright green leaves.

“Why would you put leaves on your feet?”

“They’re real. Touch them.”

“No way!”

Woohyun goes closer to Sunggyu and shows him the stems growing out of his skin.

“I knew there was something weird about you,” Sunggyu says and for a moment Woohyun thinks it is a bad thing but Sunggyu finally touches his leaves.

“You’re like Thumbelina except bigger,” Sunggyu muses as he strokes Woohyun’s leaves and the other boy giggles at the ticklish feeling. “Are you like a fairy? Is your mom a fairy?”

Woohyun smiles but shakes his head and Sunggyu bites back all of the other stupid questions bubbling inside him. It is a secret and he is already entrusted with such great of a secret.

“Who is that though?”

Sunggyu tilts his head to the side. “Who is who?”

“Thumbelina, was it?”

“Oh, it’s a fairy tale,” Sunggyu shrugs lying down to rest his head.

Woohyun nods and rests his head too, “Can you tell me?”

“Once upon a time,” Sunggyu begins and then, he yawns. “There was an old lady who didn’t have a child of her own. She really wanted to have her own child but she didn’t have a husband. She was all alone. All she had were her plants.”

“Then, she wasn’t alone.”

“What?”

“She had her plants so she wasn’t alone.”

“Plants aren’t people. She was alone.”

“But!”

“Okay, fine! She didn’t have a husband. All she had were her plants. She went to a witch to ask for a child. The witch gave her a seed. She planted the seed. When the plant’s flower bloomed, there was a little girl right in the middle. She was the size of the lady’s thumb so the lady called her Thumbelina. They were happy for a while.” Sunggyu goes faster and faster each sentence. “One day, a toad kidnapped Thumbelina. The toad wanted Thumbelina to marry her son but then, the fishes ate the stem of the lily pad so Thumbelina got away. She helped a bird. She lived with a mole. I don’t remember the rest.”

“Sunggyu, you’re so mean! Tell me how it ended!”

“Oh. I think she found people like her, little people the size of regular people’s thumbs. She got married to a handsome boy, man, I don’t know.”

“So, she goes back to her real world?”

“She didn’t go to another world. It was just a different country where the flowers there had little people in it, too.”

“But she didn’t find her way back to lady. The lady must be sad she doesn’t even know what happened to Thumbelina.”

“But that place was what Thumbelina wanted.”

Even though a little sad, Woohyun bid Sunggyu good night. “Thank you for telling me that story, Sunggyu. Good night.”

“Good night. It’s just a fairy tale,” Sunggyu assures him. “Don’t worry about it.”

When Sunggyu is already sound asleep, Woohyun notices how peaceful he looks and he feels a pang of sadness strike him. He lowers his sock and reaches for a wilted leaf that is now unattached to him.


End file.
